Heilner, Sanford Joseph, 1936-1985
Dates
- Existence: 1936 - 1985
Biographical History
Sanford Joseph Heilner (1936-1985) was an entrepreneur and genealogist.
Sanford Joseph Heilner was born on April 21, 1936, to Sanford and Marion Yancey Heilner. He was raised in Baker, Oregon. In 1956, when he was 19, he was called to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Stuttgart, Germany. While there he learned to love not only the German people but the German language. As always he learned it perfectly and used it throughout his life. Upon his return from his mission, Sanford completed his college education at Brigham Young University, married Margaret Madsen, had a family, and became successful in his professional life. Around 1977, he decided to teach himself to read Old German script in order to translate over 1000 family letters. He and Margaret visited Germany several times to facilitate this project. Sanford died October 26, 1985, at the age of 49.